Butler out three weeks

CALGARY, AB -- Flames blueliner Chris Butler is slated out for three weeks with a left thigh laceration following an injury sustained during Tuesday night’s setback against Edmonton.

“It could have been worse. Very little muscle damage and nothing wrong with the tendon, I can still move my leg,” said Butler as he spoke to the media following Wednesday’s practice.

The injury came as Butler raced back to his own net in the second period to try and prevent an eventual goal by Oilers’ forward Ales Hemsky.

“I was kind of out of position so I was diving to reach for the puck there. I actually had it on my stick, or I felt like I got a piece of it, and then I kind of slid into Kipper,” explained Butler. “As I was getting up, I went to push off, kind of had my knee at 90 degrees and went to push off and it kind of felt like a cramp. I looked down and saw that my sock was cut open, saw a cut there and it certainly didn’t feel good so when I kind of realized something was wrong and I went off.”

While Butler recognizes that it was comforting to know the damage is not worse, he is disappointed at the ill timing of the injury.

“It’s frustrating. You never want to be out, you want to play every game, especially this time of year with the situation we’re in being a part of that playoff push.”

Butler says that he will use the time off to workout and get further prepared for the stretch run. In the meantime, he is able to look at the injury with a sense of humour.

“I came to find out that Kipper likes his skates pretty sharp,” said Butler with a smile.

In other injury news, Curtis Glencross (lower body) and Derek Smith (high ankle sprain) skated with the team at practice today. It is expected that Anton Babchuk will be reinserted into the lineup in replacement of Butler.